How can you optimize your videos for YouTube and Google search results? Take a look at the top criteria, tools and steps to maximize your search visibility and results!
Aleyda SolísInternational SEO Consultant & Founder at Orainti
Video SEO In Google & YouTube Search: Making the most out of it #SMXWest
1. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Video &
YouTube In
Google Search:
Making the
most out of it
#videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
2. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://www.youtube.com/intl/en-GB/about/press/
Let’s talk about the
video opportunity!
3. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Media search, which
includes videos (and
images), are one of
those top trends that
Google Webmaster
Analysts think that
SEOs are
overlooking…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWZuQ-hu7KQ&feature=youtu.be&t=233
4. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://www.semrush.com/analytics/traffic/rank/
Videos allow to build presence in the 2 most top
sites and search engines & No. 1 social network
5. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
19% of desktop search results in the US include
video carrousels and 92% come from YouTube
https://www.rankranger.com/google-serp-features
6. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Which you can leverage to maximize your Google
search visibility for products or services queries
7. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/feature/youtube-strategy-to-drive-action/
Videos can also help to position your brand and
influence the customer journey on your site too
8. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Like Asana does with video testimonials
and how-tos in their features pages
9. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
It’s a win-win for your search strategy in 2020!
#youtubeseo at #semrushwebinar by @aleyda from @orainti
10. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://www.youtube.com/c/crawlingmondaysbyaleyda
I took the leap last
year with my own
YouTube Channel,
Crawling Mondays,
as a 2019 “new
year, new thing to
test" resolution
11. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
1.
Research
2.
Implementation, Optimization & Testing
Refining
the videos
Distributing
the videos
Which
are the main
factors to
grow your
videos
views?
Promoting
the Videos
Optimizing
the Videos
Producing
the videos
Establishing
goals &
targets to
track
Measuring
videos
results
Who are
your Video
competitors
?
What’s
your
audience
Video Search
Behavior?
How do
you measure
Video
results?
Answering key questions about
the video optimization process
12. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
For which I used this Video Optimization toolkit
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/0/d/1FIhYqIpSi6MT2HvG9SmIeH1hdB8l_0N1HnDOBpJOpjk/copy
13. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Let’s go
through some
of my top video
optimization
findings along
this journey…
14. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti#videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
To grow your
YouTube
discoverability you
need relevance,
retention &
engagement
15. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://qz.com/1178125/youtubes-recommendations-drive-70-of-what-we-watch/
Most of YouTube’s videos views are powered
by its recommendations algorithm
16. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://qz.com/1178125/youtubes-recommendations-drive-70-of-what-we-watch/
Which is so effective that
keeps users highly engaged too
17. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://creatoracademy.youtube.com/page/lesson/discovery
YouTube’s algorithm has two goals
Help each
viewer to find
the videos they
want to watch
Get viewers to
keep watching
more of what
they like
1 2
18. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://creatoracademy.youtube.com/page/lesson/discovery
These principles are used through the
different YouTube discovery channels
INTERNAL EXTERNAL
Google
Search
Results
Links
to videos
from
external
sites
Embedded
Videos
Suggested
Videos
Search
Home
Videos
Trending
Subscriptions
Tab
Notifications
19. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://creatoracademy.youtube.com/page/lesson/discovery
YouTube’s will follow the audience behavior
What users
watch and
don't watch
What users
like and dislike
How much
time users
spend
watching the
video
"not
interested”
feedback
20. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://creatoracademy.youtube.com/page/lesson/discovery
Suggested Videos are ranked to maximize
engagement based on prior user activity
Topically
Related
Videos
Videos that
viewers watch
along with the
current
video
Videos
from a
viewer’s past
watch
history
21. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://creatoracademy.youtube.com/page/lesson/discovery
YouTube Home shows videos from subscriptions,
videos watched by similar viewers, new videos
How many
times the
video has
been shown
How well
the video has
engaged and
satisfied similar
viewers
How
often the
channel or
topic is
viewed
22. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://creatoracademy.youtube.com/page/lesson/discovery
YouTube search ranks the most relevant and
highly engaged videos to the query
Title
Relevance
Watch
time of
video for
query
Description
Relevance
23. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Relevance, retention & engagement are key to
maximize video visibility within the platform
Relevance Engagement Retention
Title, description, etc. Likes, views, ratings,
comments, shares,
subscriptions
Watch Time
24. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
How to develop
relevant videos to
be also liked so
much that retain
and keep users
engaged, that will
also make YouTube
to recommend
them further?
25. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti#videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
You need to
understand your
audience preferences
& competition to
establish an effective
video plan
26. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintiAhrefs & keywordtool.io
Get popular queries to target by using your
current keywords tools with YouTube support
27. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintiBuzzsumo
Identify the videos with more views &
engagement about your topic using Buzzsumo
28. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Refine the terms by using YouTube’s focused
tools like vidIQ, including competition metrics
vidIQ
29. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintividIQ
Identify the
top ranked
videos
keywords
used in tags,
as well as the
most popular
related terms
30. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintiGoogle Trends
Verify
seasonality
and trend
over time by
using Google
Trends that
includes a
YouTube filter
31. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Obtain the top channels for your relevant topics
to analyze how they’re optimized and videos
Socialblade, Noxinfluencer and Buzzsumo
32. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
What topics do
your
competitors
publish about?
What are the
best performing
ones?
Noxinfluencer
33. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
What terms are they targeting
with their top performing videos?
Noxinfluencer
34. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Which of these terms are also popular & trigger
video results/carrousels/snippets in Google?
Semrush
35. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
For which of these topics
do you already have
content that can be easily
repurposed into a video,
that you can also embed in
the page to enrich it?
36. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Start with relevant, non-competitive, but still
popular queries/topics to address with videos
Medium
Search
Volume
Low
Competition
High
topical
relevance for
your
audience
High
expertise
Feasibility
to produce
and cover w/
a video
Possibility
to repurpose to
blog post/article/
etc. or use with
existing site
content
Is there a
video intent?
Google
shows
videos
Are
aligned
with your
marketing/
business
goals
37. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Remember that it's about targeting topics that
are highly connected to your business offering
Tubebuddy
vs
38. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Establishing a consistent video publishing
schedule for them as a result
Week Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday
1
Publish How to
“Set SEO Alerts”
1. Promote
in Social & Groups
2. Reply to comments
3. Repurpose video in
blog post
1. Reply to
comments
2. Retweet/Reshare
other people
1. Reply to
comments
2. Retweet/
Reshare
other
people
1. Ask for
feedback on
current video
2. Ask for
questions for
next topic
Record
next week
video
2
Publish How to
“Optimize
faceted pages”
1. Promote
in Social & Groups
2. Reply to comments
3. Repurpose video in
blog post
1. Reply to
comments
2. Retweet/Reshare
other people
1. Reply to
comments
2. Retweet/
Reshare
other
people
1. Ask for
feedback on
current video
2. Ask for
questions for
next topic
Ask for
ideas/run
poll for
future
topics
Record
next week
video
3
Publish Interview
“With Carlos -
How an SEO
agency in Spain
is run”
1. Promote
in Social & Groups
2. Reply to comments
3. Repurpose video in
blog post
1. Reply to
comments
2. Retweet/Reshare
other people
1. Reply to
comments
2. Retweet/
Reshare
other
people
1. Ask for
feedback on
current video
2. Ask for
questions for
next topic
Record
next week
video
… … … … … … … …
39. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti#videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Start by optimizing
your YouTube
videos key areas
for relevance and
better structure
40. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://youtube.com/c/crawlingmondaysbyaleyda
Begin optimizing the base of your presence:
Your channel description, keywords…
41. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Make the most
out of each video
content area to
make them
relevant towards
the targeted
queries
Tubebuddy & VidIQ
42. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Starting with
titles,
descriptions, tags
for which YouTube
gives length
references and
you can get
keywords
suggestions w/
tools add-ons
Titles
Descriptions
Tags
Tubebuddy & VidIQ
43. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Tubebuddy
and VidIQ
add-ons can
save you time
from looking
for the related
keywords
elsewhere
Tubebuddy & VidIQ
44. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Add relevant
hashtags in
descriptions (they
will be featured
above the title) and
in titles too
45. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
The hashtags will become clickable
and generate a YouTube search
46. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
LOL
Upload your own “higher quality”
closed captions to videos if you can
Tubebuddy & VidIQ
47. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
vs
Take a look at how the top ranked videos for your
queries are optimized and improve yours
48. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Are these elements all taken into consideration
when ranking in YouTube search results though?
Title
Description
Hashtags
Tags
Closed
Captions
49. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
I tested it
#videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
50. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
I included the
same
“dummy” text
in the title,
description,
tags, hashtags,
closed
captions to see
which video
ranked
51. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Tests results
suggest that
the title,
description
and hashtag
are taken into
consideration
52. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Title
Description
Hashtags
Tags
Closed
Captions
No tags and closed captions though
53. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
However, closed captions have other important
roles that will improve engagement & retention
For Hearing
Impaired
Watch muted
video
Non-native
audience
support
54. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Google has also
started to show
Timestamps in the
ranked Videos in
search results from
YouTube*
https://blog.google/products/search/key-moments-video-search/
55. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Label (timestamp)
Enable them for
your videos by
adding labels
and timestamps
in your
YouTube’s videos
descriptions
https://developers.google.com/search/docs/data-types/video#best-practices-youtube
56. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
They can be shown like this in Google’s
Mobile Search Results…
57. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
… although your
videos need to be
ranking first already in
video carrousels
https://www.searchenginejournal.com/google-video-timestamp-results/332623/
58. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti#videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Optimize and
promote your
YouTube Videos
for Engagement
& Retention
59. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Once you're ranked
for a query in
YouTube Search
Results: How do you
engage and retain
users to grow your
subscribers even
further?
60. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Besides a relevant,
catchy title and
description, it starts
with your thumbnail,
that can make your
video to stand out vs
the rest and improve
your CTR
61. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Thumbnails are the
“ads” of your videos
and you should design
them to make them
unique, attractive with
a representative
image, including a
catchy title
62. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Replace the default thumbnail of the video with
an original image using a thumbnail generator
https://www.canva.com/create/youtube-thumbnails/
63. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Run AB tests of
your video
thumbnail and
metadata with
tools like
Tubebuddy, to
identify your
audience
preferences
Tubebuddy
64. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Create
playlists to
facilitate users
to browse
through your
channel videos
using their
topics
65. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Use your YouTube
Channel home to
promote your
latest videos or
those that
generate the
highest number of
subscribers
66. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Include info cards in your videos to link to other
relevant ones or create a poll to engage users
67. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Add end-screens
to your videos
using the
YouTube’s studio
feature to refer
your users to
more of them
and subscribe to
your channel
68. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Don’t be shy! Ask your users to engage
Keep
watching to
get answers
Leave
comments
with
questions
Like the
video
Subscribe
to channel
69. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Add call to actions
with links to watch
more of your videos
and subscribe from
your description, be
the first to comment
and pin your own
comment too, to
start and incentivize
the conversation
70. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Interact with
users in the
comments
addressing their
questions, liking
meaningful
comments
71. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Promote your
videos and
incentivize
subscriptions
outside YouTube
too: From social
media, your
newsletter,
email signature,
Website…
https://twitter.com/crawlingmondays
72. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Organize give-aways to encourage
subscriptions to your YouTube Channel
https://www.seroundtable.com/youtube-subscriber-giveaway-28157.html
73. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Invite special
guests,
authoritative
people within
your field that
will have their
own community,
to go beyond
your reach
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWZuQ-hu7KQ
74. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A6oUH5JZkRg
Piggyback on
trending topics
that people are
actively
searching for in
your sector
75. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
It’s important to promote while the video is
“new” since YouTube gives a “freshness” boost
https://www.briggsby.com/reverse-engineering-youtube-search
76. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti#videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Expand and
repurpose your
YouTube videos
for Google
search rankings
77. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Create a blog or
section within your
existing blog,
creating a post for
each one of your
videos
https://www.aleydasolis.com/en/crawling-mondays/
78. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Embed your
YouTube video in the
post initially to help
promote it, along a
transcription,
including
complementary
information and
resources
79. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
If you have already an
article/content for the video
topic, you can embed it
there to enrich the existing
ranking page
80. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Include a “rel=0” parameter to show related
videos only from your channel (no competitors)
81. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Link to your channel with a “?sub_confirmation"
parameter to go to the subscription option
82. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Include a watermark to your entire videos,
allowing users to easily subscribe
83. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
You can
generate the
transcriptions
with automated
speech to text
services, which
are very cheap
Rev
84. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Or you can do it for free, copy/pasting
YouTube’s automated transcripts
85. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Free content FTW
#videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
86. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
After the “freshness” period passes by, you’ll
want to switch the YouTube embed for Wistia
https://www.briggsby.com/reverse-engineering-youtube-search
87. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Wistia videos will add VideoObject structured
data to the embedded videos automatically
Wistia
88. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Like this you’ll have
higher chances to
rank for your target
queries in Google
search results with
long-form posts with
embedded videos
89. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Ready to see some results?
#videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
90. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
You can rank for
those not yet so
competitive but
highly relevant
terms within
YouTube
Rankranger
94. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Rank as well in
Google search
Results with
your YouTube
videos and
embedded
video in blog
posts too
Rankranger
97. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Rank also in Google’s
search results with the post
with a video thumbnail
when the YouTube video
doesn't rank
98. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Rank also twice
with the same
video within the
Carrousel, with
the YouTube
video and the
embedded one
in the post
99. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Or rank with a
video highlighted
with a "key
moment” in
mobile search
results
100. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintiYouTube Studio Analytics
Identify the
characteristics
of videos that
generate better
rankings, more
views,
engagements &
subscribers to
identify what
works best
101. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintiAccuranker
Those of your competitors that outrank you in
Google & YouTube Search Results to identify gap
102. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintiYouTube Studio Analytics
Incorporate the changes. Rinse and Repeat
103. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
It shouldn’t be
about raw
numbers, but your
end goal: having
an impact with
your actual
relevant audience
through the
customer journey
104. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Like they’re doing already
www.orainti.com
105. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @orainti
Keeping always the RER in mind
Relevance Engagement Retention
Title, description, etc. Likes, views, ratings,
comments, shares,
subscriptions
Watch Time
106. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintiwww.orainti.com
* SEO Consultant & Founder at Orainti
* SEO Speaker at +100 Events in +20 countries
* Author “SEO. Las Claves Esenciales.”
* Blogger in Search Engine Land & Search Engine Journal
* Crawling Mondays YouTube Channel Host
* European Search Personality of the Year in 2018
I’m Aleyda Solis, SEO Consultant
& Founder at Orainti
107. #videoseo at #smxwest by @aleyda from @oraintihttps://youtube.com/c/crawlingmondaysbyaleyda
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